The Perfect Drug [SINGLE]

Nine Inch Nails

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 13, 1997)
• Original Release Date: May 13, 1997
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Single
• Label: Nothing
• ASIN: B000001Y7W
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (85 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #63,954 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  Music > Dance & Electronic > Industrial Dance

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Here's where the trippier directions of the electronic movement run smack into its Sturm-und-Drang industrial heritage. Trent Reznor's peak achievement through 1997 is reshaped five times over with profoundly weighty beats, dub textures, and trance soundscapes. The Orb's mix, which makes Reznor sound like he's drowning in his bathtub, is a bit silly, but otherwise this is fascinating stuff. --Jeff Bateman

Product Description

Limited Re-press of this Long Deleted Australian Exclusive EP. Features Five Mixes of the Title Track, plus the Original Version Not Available on the USA Version. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Review (Version), October 15, 2003

By	Ilker Yucel "Kryptych" (Annapolis, MD United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm sick and tired of the blind worship people give to Trent Reznor as if he is some kind of deity for the industrial music scene. Yes, the man is a brilliant musician and producer who pushes the limits of technology and sound design to their utmost, but he wasn't the first to do this. Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubatuen, Coil, any of these names ring a bell people? Hell, even Coil have remixed NIN to make versions ever more frightening than what Trent's done. Don't get me wrong, I love NIN and I think Trent is an amazing talent, but I'm tired of people trashing this CD because it doesn't sound like NIN or because Trent only did one version. That's the whole point of remixes, to hear OTHER artists' interpretation of a song or songs. If a NIN song is going to be remixed by Meat Beat Manifesto, I don't expect it to sound like NIN, I expect it to sound like Meat Beat Manifesto. Get over it people, just because it has the NIN name to it doesn't mean it'll sound like NIN. To those of you who complained about this, you should've known better.

So with that in mind, I think "The Perfect Drug" EP is great! All the mixes are different, running the range from dub to trance to industrial. Meat Beat Manifesto's version starts things off with Jack Dangers' quintessential blend of frenetic beats, and dub basslines. Even the bits from the original song sound more like random samples as opposed to a remix. My personal favorite is the "Plug" version. It's so ethereal and ambient, with amazing textures and sounds. It also seems to retain the most tracks from the original song, and the beats are just infectious. The NIN version is interesting because it bears little resemblance to the original song. It's not so much an interpretation as it is a completely new song with just a few bits from the original thrown in to tie it in. It's hard, it's fast, and it's industrial. The version by Spacetime Continuum is great for its trance-like feel, but it doesn't go as far as one might hope. The Orb version is perhaps the weirdest, with perhaps the most interesting synth sounds on the whole CD. The import edition of this CD has the original song as the last track.

I think the CD is a wonderful example of how electronic music translates across its own subgenres, and if anything shows off the talents of all who contributed. I choose not to look at it as a single or a remix CD, but rather a compilation of different electronic artists with a common theme, that theme being NIN's "The Perfect Drug." If people would try to look at it this way, I think there'd be less disappointment. But then again, so many people are justly blindly following the NIN-Army that they don't care, it has to be NIN or nothing (and yes, that is a bit of a pun). I like NIN, and I have most of the CD's, but to hate something because it doesn't sound like NIN is just plain arrogant. Give this CD a chance, it's actually really good.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not What I Expected, June 1, 2002

By	Zero "www.burningfreak.com" (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This single features five remixes, each by a different artist, of "The Perfect Drug", arguably one of Trent Reznor's finest moments. However, while Nine Inch Nails tracks have been remixed by others in the past (Aphex Twin and Coil appear on Further Down the Spiral), this album leaves much to be desired. In each of its incarnations, the song has been rendered almost unrecognizable from its original version. The five lengthy tracks seem to merely cycle through various industrial loops, switching gears only when the repetition becomes annoying. In most of the mixes, the full extent of the song's vocals is the line "You are the perfect drug" repeated over and over or occasionally fading in and out in the background. Even the remix by Trent himself, which is probably the best track on the disc (the only one that even sounds like Nine Inch Nails) seems drawn out and somewhat boring. Being a huge fan, I can't say I'm sorry I bought this album but I was disappointed in the quality of the material. I was also very disappointed (not to mention shocked and confused) to learn that the original song was not on the particular version of this album that I purchased. The bottom line: I'd recommend this only to die-hard fans.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Decent, but you don't get the original song, December 8, 1999

By	"jumpyclown" (Warwick, Warwick Bermuda) - See all my reviews

I bought this because i like the song, perfect drug, but unfortunatley, it was nowhere to be found on this disc which consists of remixes, which, in my opinion are so interpretive of the original song, that there are few resemblances to the original at all. So i was a bit disappointed. But of course if you are a hardcore NIN fan, you'll have to have this, but if you aren't as hardcore, but like NIN, this isn't worth it, you're better off buying the Lost highway soundtrack if you want The original version of perfect drug.